HS softball: Premier pitcher Berkley Zache powering Saint Joseph

Premier pitching performances from some of the premier teams were the storyline last week among the area high school softball powers.

No one was more premier in the circle though than Saint Joseph superstar Berkley Zache.

More: HS softball: Zache sisters set to power Saint Joseph again

Zache, the flame throwing junior, led her team to the championship of the Kokomo Tournament over the weekend. The ace was almost untouchable as the Class 4A No. 7 Huskies went 3-0 Friday and Saturday. She fired a one-hitter with 17 strikeouts in a 1-0 win over Huntington North Friday night. Zache then had a perfect game with 19 strikeouts as St. Joe blanked Bellmont 10-0 in the title game Saturday. She worked 14 innings in the tourney, allowing one hit with 37 strikeouts.

Zache, an Oklahoma commit and one of the top players nationally in the Class of 2025 is now 5-0 this season. She has worked 36 innings, allowing just one unearned run and seven hits. She has struck out 92 of the 125 batters she has faced with seven walks and opponents are batting .059 versus her. Zache has lost just two games in three seasons in her prolific prep pitching career, with both of those coming to powerhouse Penn.

St. Joe coach Earl Keith likes what he has seen so far from his team. The Huskies, who graduated six starters from last year's team that went 27-4 and lost to eventual state champion Penn 3-0 in a Class 4A regional game, are now 11-1 overall and 4-0 in the NIC. The Huskies have outscored their 12 foes 114-29.

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"Overall, I have been pleased with the way we have played," said Keith via email prior to playing in the Kokomo tourney. "That being said, I think we have a lot of room to improve, which is exciting."

"For us to continue to improve, we need steady pitching from a couple of other pitchers. Along with that, our defense must improve to be ready to play at all times. Our hitting has been solid but can always keep improving. "

The Huskies, who won the Class 3A state title in 2022, have been led by star sisters Berkley and Riley Zache. Senior Riley, also an Oklahoma commit, is batting .500 with 20 runs scored and 21 RBI. She also has five doubles, two triples and four home runs. Berkley is batting .476 with 12 RBI to go with seven doubles and one home run.

"Berkley has been herself," Keith said. "Strong, steady, and hard working. As long as she remains herself, she can beat anyone. It’s so awesome to see this talented young pitcher get better each year. It is surreal to watch.

"Riley is a rockstar. She is both our physical leader and our vocal leader. It’s fantastic because she knows the game inside and out. She studies it then puts it into action. She is off to another great start at the plate and always dependable at shortstop or catching."

St. Joe has also gotten contributions from a plethora of players, including several who are new to the varsity level. The duo of Mary Stack and Kenadie Schrock have both been outstanding offensively for the Huskies.

"So far, Kenadie Schrock, Olivia Borsodi, and Camille Potter have continued to improve from last year’s team," Keith noted. "Schrock was the only starter. Sophomores Mary Stack and Kiley Weinberg have come along nicely. Freshmen Bella Esquibel, Myla Blazejewski and Payton Wulf have shown signs of being strong players."

St. Joe will play at Penn in a bigtime clash of Class 4A powers on May 6. The Huskies beat the Kingsmen 4-1 a season ago en route to winning the NIC title at 11-0. Penn then won 3-0 at St. Joe in a regional game en route to winning the Class 4A state title last June.

New Prairie star Ava Geyer was also magnificent in the circle of late. The junior, who helped her team win the Class 3A state title in 2023, fired a no-hitter in an 11-0 Northern Indiana Conference win over Adams. She then was even better with a perfect game two days later in an 11-0 NIC win over Clay. Geyer fanned all 15 batters in the five inning win over the Colonials.

The deep and talented Penn pitching staff turned in a pair of no-hit gems last week. Junior Margaret Bell fired a no-no with one walk and 10 strikeouts in a 10-0 win over Washington. Junior Liv Signorino then tossed a no hitter in a 7-0 win over Elkhart. Signorino, the winning pitcher in the Class 4A state title game victory for Penn last June, had three walks and 13 strikeouts.

The Class 4A No. 3 Kingsmen went 2-1 in the Carmel Invitational over the weekend. Coach Beth Zachary's deep and talented group beat Noblesville 9-3 and Carmel 9-6 and then lost 11-9 to Pendleton Heights.

Riley, ranked No. 3 in Class 3A, started last week with two impressive NIC wins. The Wildcats downed Class 2A No. 5 Bremen 5-3 and then topped city foe Adams 6-3. Riley then struggled in the Kokomo Tourney, going 0-3 with losses to Kokomo (11-4), Franklin County (8-7) and Huntington North (12-6).

Mishawaka picked up a 14-6 non-conference win at St. Joe in a makeup game last week. The Cavemen, who finished 22-7 a year ago with a loss to the Huskies in sectional play, got home runs from Holly Shine and winning pitcher Camila Ramirez-Quijada. Brynn Lewinski and Olivia Bultinck each had three hits for Mishawaka.

Sensational Seven

Note: Records through Saturday games

1. St. Joseph (11-1, 4-0 NIC): The Huskies were dominant in winning the eight-team Kokomo Tournament. St. Joe outscored its three foes 30-3 while totaling 36 hits. Mary Stack batted .692 in the tourney with five RBI and two triples. Riley Zache hit .667 with two triples, two home runs and five RBI and Berkley Zache batted .556 with four doubles and four RBI.

2. Penn (11-5, 3-0 NIC): The Kingsmen continued to play the best of the best statewide. Penn beat Noblesville 9-3 Friday night in the Carmel Invitational as star sophomore Logan Rumble cracked a grand slam home run. Senior Aubrey Zachary went six innings with 10 strikeouts to get the pitching win. Rumble had a homer, Abby Widmar four RBI, Izzi Hanna three hits and Camille Biever two hits and two RBI in an 11-9 loss to Pendleton Heights Saturday. Widmar had two hits and two RBI, Rumble two hits and Ashlyn Kronewitter two RBI in a 9-6 win over Carmel Saturday.

3 . New Prairie (7-2, 3-1 NIC) : The Cougars continued to roll with four wins in a busy week. New Prairie topped Adams and Clay for league wins and also beat Knox Thursday and Chesterton 11-6 on Saturday.

4. Riley (9-3, 3-0 NIC): The Wildcats remained unbeaten in NIC play with key wins over Bremen and Adams last week. Riley still has NIC games left with powers St. Joe, Penn and New Prairie.

5. Mishawaka (7-4, 3-0 NLC): The Cavemen began defense of their Northern Lakes Conference title with three convincing league wins. Mishawaka beat Wawasee (6-1), Plymouth (14-2) and Goshen (10-0) to start league play. Mishawaka won the NLC title at 14-0 in 2023.

6 . Bremen (6-3, 2-2 NIC): The Lions topped Culver Academy 16-4 Saturday. Mickie Shively and Eliana Grubbs each had three hits to pace Bremen.

7. Jimtown (7-2, 4-0 NIC): The Jimmies dropped a 4-3 final in eight innings at Northridge Thursday night. They bounced back Saturday to down Elkhart 10-0 to stay undefeated in NIC action. Skyler Pello led the way with a home run and three RBI in Saturday's win.

Others to watch: South Central (7-1, 1-0 PCC), Clay (3-6-1, 1-2-1 NIC), Northridge 5-5 (3-0 NLC).

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: HS softball: Premier pitcher Berkley Zache powering Saint Joseph